Fixer upper.

First an update as to how I'm doing with my 2nd hand plan. So far pretty good.... a few things bought new but mostly still keeping on track. I took apart the fan that I had purchased for my daughter over a year ago and since died, tried to fix it but to no avail. I cleaned it out as well as I could, even called my step dad on Skype for advice and he seemed to think that the fan motor had burned out, I could try some WD40 but it didn't look good. I doubted I would be able to fix it , I just felt compelled to try before it joined so many others like it in a landfill somewhere. So after tossing in the towel I hopped on my old friend Kijiji and searched for a new fan and found a small Honeywell desk fan for $5 that I am positive they were only selling because cleaning it was too much work. It was FILTHY, but one exercise pump, 2 pipe cleaners, a jcloth and a screwdriver later it was almost sparkling. Have we gotten so used to everything shiny, everything new , that we are willing to sell or throw something out just to avoid cleaning it? How many small appliances have you tossed out without any idea what was wrong with it? Don't get me wrong, I am well aware that "things" are not built to last and that the cost to fix most things if often almost as much as it is to buy a newer shinier "thing" that no doubt is faster and has bigger better buttons. Someone once told me that cost is only an issue in the absence of value. So what is the value in having the newest "thing", and what is the cost? Is keeping up with the Joneses, buying into the shiny white smiles of the happy people on commercials really so valuable to us we are willing to ignore the cost? How many broken toasters, kettles, vacuums and fans can we fit in our landfills? If/when we get to the point where we have to pay for all of our garbage, will building a toaster that can last for more than 2 years be a priority once again? I believe that it is inevitable that our need to consume will consume us literally, financially, emotionally, and physically. We will be be surrounded by the gadgets we had to have, that promised us our life would be better, our coffee tastier, our floor cleaner, our smiles whiter, and what we will have to show for it? An empty wallet, a full garage, and kids who are doomed to repeat our mistakes. But just maybe if we're lucky we will learn somewhere along the way to just be happy with what we have and who we are. That a faster car does not make the man anymore than $400 shoes make the woman or vice versa depending on your vices! That boiling your water on the stove will still make a lovely cup of tea and that just because your vacuum doesn't have a fancy cyclone tunnel your floor will get clean I PROMISE. So the next time you want to toss out something because you want the new shinier version, at least sell it on a website like Kijijji or donate it to your local thrift shop, even if it seems to be broken, who knows maybe all it need is a good cleaning.

I also found myself needing some hooks to hang the curtain rods and curtains I had purchased on Kijiji but wasn't having any luck so I broke down and bought some at a big box store which shall remain nameless. I walked in there and felt like I was cheating, but I promise you it meant nothing my sweet Kijiji and I was thinking of you the whole time !! I have come across a few other things that I have yet to be able to find on Kijiji so am headed to a Mom2Mom sale this weekend, and hoping to hit up a few garage sales so wish me happy hunting!